I’m not 100% sure but i think it was only important because they were in a really big hurry to get at the Lannisters second army before word got out that they were not where they were supposed to be. Without the time constraint there are probably other ways to go back north.
The only thing that makes sense to me is if it was all a set up to test Theon’s loyalties.
First, the whole idea of going to Winterfell and pretty much every decision since was suggested to him by his 2nd in command. Then you have his sister suddenly show up unexpectedly, pleading with him to abandon WF and flee for his life. Then, shortly after she leaves, the siege begins, yet we never see the siege force. All we hear is a horn blown by someone trying pretty hard to instill maximum fear in the occupants, but they never attack.
Then Theon gives his speech and goes full Iron-born, all his men play along, but none are surprised in the least when he gets knocked out from behind.
I think they were ALL in on it, and it was ALL set up as a rite of passage and to test his loyalty. His sister’s force probably dealt with those sent by Robb, or at least kept them at bay.
The above is the simplest explanation I can come up with for what went on. Theon got played, but he passed the test.
(can’t believe I typed that all on my phone!)
There was a seige force. Theon said he stood on the battlements and saw them.
Plus Robb and Roose Bolton talk about sending a siege force.
And I don’t think “ignore your sister, hold Winterfell in a futile way with 20 guys” proves loyalty.
But Theon said he saw the siege force. How big was this charade?
A mummer’s farce!
Don’t attribute to cunning what could more easily be attributed to budgetary limitations.
Oh, he said he saw them? I don’t remember that, but I’ll take your word(s) for it.
Well, I guess there could have been some complicity between Roose Bolton’s bastard and the Iron Islanders. Either that, or he only saw the siege forces from a distance/in the dark and couldn’t identify them as his sister’s.
What other explanations are there for what went on? I guess you could say that the Stark-allied force entered WF, found nothing but ruins, and just left the area in pursuit, but it seems unlikely that they wouldn’t at least leave someone behind. And I think it’s even more unlikely that Theon’s men just decided to turn him in. Where would they go after that?
As for SenorBeef’s comment about Theon’s final actions not proving loyalty - but they DO prove he’s got the heart of an Iron-born. (What is dead may never die!) It was his earlier action of attacking Winterfell that proved his loyalty, or at least that he wasn’t loyal to the Starks. His father can trust him now - he’s got nowhere else to go but to fight for his father with the same kind of determination he just displayed. If he is given adequate forces next time, he can actually contribute to the cause. He DID take and crush Winterfell with just 20 men, after all.
Well, one alternative explanation is that the Bolton force burned down Winterfell. Another is that they sent their full force to persue the iron crew who set fire to winterfell to create cover to escape, but it seems like they’d at least leave behind some sort of force.
Then again, if the Boltons had betrayed the Starks for whatever reason, you’d think Luwin would’ve mentioned it before he died.
Alright, just got a chance to rewatch the KL scenes. I wish I could say that it helped answer some questions, but it just led to more.
A few points:
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After knocking out Theon, they left his sword laying on the ground when they appeared to be leaving - village still unburned. Perhaps this is just nitpicking, but if they were going to return to the Iron Islands with Theon, you’d think they would’ve grabbed his sword. (So, minor point detracting from my previous theory.)
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In the same scene as above, there were also some KL people/extras left alive standing in the background. So, maybe killing grandpa *was *unnecessary if they left behind other survivors.
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When Bran et al. emerge from hiding, everything is burned, the background villagers we last saw alive are dead on the ground, and we don’t see the sword.
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At some point, grandpa somehow made his way to the woods. He must’ve seen something, and gone there for some reason, but the bastard didn’t have the courtesy to tell anybody before he died.
I’m starting to lean more towards Bolton and/or his bastard being traitors to Robb - maybe they have some side deal with the Greyjoys. I guess it’s still possible that Theon’s crew wasn’t really leaving immediately after we last saw them, but it did seem that way. (“Let’s go home.”) Perhaps, if Theon’s sis was indeed the siege force, she came in afterwards and finished off the survivors and burned the city.
I dunno, but I’m much less confident that I have any idea WTF went down. Maybe I’m over-thinking it and putting to much weight on minor details, but I really can’t buy that Theon’s men just turned him in.
Winterfell, not King’s Landing.
What about the possibility the the residents of Winterfell burned it themselves? They were left without any protection, they are probably quite superstitious about the coming winter and the evil from the North. Maybe they all just thought, “Fuck it, I’m not staying here.” Probably some sort of mini-rioting over supplies and off they went to find someplace else.
Just a thought, not really buying it myself, but thought I’d put it out there.
Okay, let’s think about this logically. It seems to me that the Iron Islanders just wanted to get out of there, and from the way that Dagmer behaved, clocking Theon and bagging him, they must be planning to use him to trade for their freedom.
Robb has already told – is it Roose Bolton? – to instruct his “bastard” to let everyone except Theon go. There’s absolutely no reason for them to burn down Winterfell, especially since they know they’re going to surrender to Robb Stark’s bannerman.
So, I have to think that they just left, trading Theon for the privilege.
So who destroyed Winterfell? If Bolton’s bastard meant to free and hold Winterfell for the Starks, he or a contingent of his men would still be there when Bran and Rickon emerged.
So, unless there was a third army, unseen – Wildlings? – even bigger than Bastard Bolton and better equipped and disciplined, there’s no one left for the burning of Winterfell but Bastard Bolton.
Now, was Roose Bolton the bannerman that Robb’s direwolf had to subdue? If it was, maybe the burning of Winterfell was revenge for that.
No, that was Greatjon Umber.
The problem I have with it being Bolton is that the Old Man would have definitely said something to the effect, "Get word to Robb Stark that Roose Bolton is not to be trusted.
Hmm … So do we know anything about Roose Bolton and his bastard?
By “Old Man,” you mean Maester Luwin? Would he have known? It seems to me that masters’ knowledge tends to be location-specific. Would another maester have had the foresight to warn Luwin about Bolton?
Maybe there should be a thread devoted to Game of Thrones funnies like this GoT Facebook page.
Oops, right.
I dunno, but I just got around to watching that Maroon5 parody you linked earlier, and it was hilarious!
Well, Roose Bolton has been in several scenes. He suggested flaying POWs to Robb and was turned down. Other than that he’s been a generic lord under Robb’s command.
We haven’t heard anything about the bastard though.